GETTING A TECHNOLOGY SYSTEM IN MODERN DAY

Mobile Lab – That Day

Zhao Ming froze mid-step as he heard shouting behind him. From the direction of the sound, it was clear the commotion wasn’t directed at him. His curiosity piqued, he quickly slipped his headgear back on—he had taken it off just moments ago—before making his way toward the experiment box, where the mysterious material was being studied.

“What’s going on?” he asked in a low voice as he approached. There was no need to raise his volume; the internal comms system ensured his words reached the intended recipient without him having to specify.

“The material just turned into a liquid for a few moments… but now it’s back to its original solid form,” one of the researchers responded. Almost immediately, Zhao’s virtual assistant pulled up a recording of the phenomenon.

As he watched the playback, a sense of unease settled over him. The transformation had happened in mere seconds as if the material had a will of its own. The shift from solid to liquid was seamless—almost organic—only for it to revert back just as quickly. The reversal was so precise that, if not for the recording, it would have been easy to doubt that anything had happened at all. It was as if time had been rewound, the material appearing completely undisturbed, as though taunting them into questioning their perceptions.

“But why now?” one of the researchers finally asked, having recovered from the initial shock. His mind raced, trying to make sense of why the material had reacted when, as far as they knew, nothing had been done to it at that moment.

“Maybe it was charging during the research and finally gathered enough energy to do that?” another researcher suggested. It was a shot in the dark, but still a possibility. With so little understanding of the material’s composition or nature, even the wildest guesses could contain a thread of truth. Sometimes, speculation led to breakthroughs.

At his words, the entire room tensed. A few seconds passed in silence, each of them waiting to see if the material would react again. Their uncertainty was justified—after all, the only confirmed fact they had was that the material responded to mana. Beyond that, its behavior was a mystery. Who was to say this wasn’t a form of attack?

Five seconds stretched into what felt like minutes, but nothing happened. The team, unwilling to waste time waiting indefinitely, resumed their discussion.

“Maybe it reacted to a specific action we did by accident—something that acted as a trigger,” another researcher proposed.

“I think so too,” Zhao said, his voice steady, though his mind was already running through every movement he had made. A gut feeling told him that something he had done was responsible for the material’s reaction.

“Let’s test that theory,” said Dimitry, the head researcher of the current shift, his thick Russian accent adding weight to his words. Without missing a beat, he continued, “Show us each of our actions moments before and after the material reacted.”

The lab’s virtual intelligence, responsible for monitoring and documenting everything, immediately projected a holographic display. Multiple camera feeds appeared, each focusing on a different researcher. The timestamps on the edges of the screens confirmed they were synchronized, all centered around the feed capturing the material itself.

As the feeds played, each researcher instinctively focused on their own actions, unaware of what Zhao and Dimitry had just noticed.

“Replay, but this time, leave only Zhao’s and the material’s feed,” Dimitry instructed. He needed to confirm that what he had seen wasn’t just a trick of the eye.

As the replay ran again, the entire room fell into silence. This time, they all saw it. The moment Zhao’s headgear began lifting off his head, the material transitioned from solid to liquid, completing its transformation precisely as the headgear left him completely unprotected. When he put the headgear back on, the material reverted just as quickly, mirroring the speed of his movement.

Dimitry wasted no time. His voice rang through the lab with unyielding authority.

“Stop all research immediately. Evacuate the lab and head to the designated containment zones.” His tone left no room for hesitation or argument.

The researchers exchanged uneasy glances but obeyed without question.

“This thing reacted the moment the psionic shielding stopped protecting Zhao’s mind,” Dimitry continued, his expression grave. “Which means—whatever it’s capable of—it was actively being blocked by the shielding. That alone is enough reason for concern. Until we confirm that Zhao hasn’t been compromised or affected in any way, all research is on hold.”

As the team swiftly moved out, Zhao remained still for a moment before his virtual assistant directed him toward a separate containment zone. He was Target Zero in this unfolding mystery, and though his thoughts swirled with questions, he followed orders without protest, his face calm despite the weight of the situation.

………..

“So, was his mind breached? Was the material dangerous?” asked the evaluator.

“No,” Amir replied. “After a series of tests, the results came back clear. Following deliberations and discussions with high command, the scientists were granted permission to continue their research. They volunteered despite knowing the risks, as their new approach required direct exposure because one of them had to be in the same room as the material without the protective headgear shielding their mind. Although the material would remain inside the containment box, it was still considered dangerous.”

The evaluator remained silent this time, letting Amir decide the direction of the narration.

“The next phase of testing only began after the mobile lab was moved a safe distance away from the nearest vessels. ARES forces were placed on high alert, ready to intervene the moment the Virtual Intelligence detected anything anomalous or potentially dangerous.”

Amir took a breath before continuing. “Lo and behold, this new approach finally yielded results. The material’s reaction became more pronounced and faster the closer the unshielded researcher got to it. However, despite this increased activity, the material never moved—it simply shifted states but made no further attempts at interaction.”

He let those words sink in before delivering the most crucial revelation.

“After further deliberation and another round of volunteering, one researcher was finally permitted to make physical contact with the material—to remove it from the sealed containment box.” He paused for a moment before resuming.

“And at that moment, everything changed.

Because it was at that moment, that we discovered a new type of life in that star system.”

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